Aakash Chopra believes Rohit Sharma was not referring to any specific players when he stated that only those who are hungry for Test cricket will be given opportunities in the format.
India got better of England by 5 wickets at Ranchi today and heave a sigh of relief in the series after taking a 3-1 perfect lead over England in the five match series. During the post-match press conference Rohit who played a big part in the victory, said that innate hunger will build champions. In his recently posted on YouTube video, Chopra explored a few quotes that the skippers made following the game. He said:
“Rohit Sharma has said that this is the toughest format and if you have to succeed in that, you need a lot of discipline and dedication. He also said that it’s evident if someone does not have that hunger, but he was not hinting at anyone.”
“If you hear his entire bite until the end, he also said that there is no one within the playing group or outside who is saying that they don’t want to play. So he was not taking potshots at anyone.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra noted that what Rohit said was 110 percent correct. However, he opined that Indian cricket is in a fairly decent space as they have a plethora of committed senior and junior players.
Aakash Chopra slams English media for exaggerating Bazball phenomenon
Aakash Chopra questioned why the English media attributed everything to Bazball.
“Stokes is saying that no one had given them a chance and that they did a great job reaching here. Someone also said that adapting to the situation is Bazball’s theory. Is everything Bazball? I am not saying the team is saying that but the English media becomes overactive.”
Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator encouraged England to address their middle-order difficulties, adding:
“I would say have a little realization that you had many opportunities to be at par or go ahead in this series. Your middle order doesn’t turn up at all. The middle order is a disorder. If they do an honest assessment, they will find that the middle-order batters’ performance has been extremely ordinary.”
Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra remarked that England squandered promising opportunities in both Ranchi and Rajkot. He said that although their batsmen failed to capitalize on a 46-run first-inning advantage in Ranchi, Joe Root’s dismissal while attempting a reverse scoop in Rajkot resulted in a collapse.